VISTA (CNS) - A man living in the North County accused of raping a 15-year-old relative by marriage he had never met before was behind bars today, a police lieutenant said.
Wenceslao Acevedo Mendez, 34, allegedly entered the girl's home on West Ninth Avenue in Escondido on Tuesday, forced her into a back bedroom, locked the door and raped her, said Lt. Craig Carter of the Escondido Police Department.
Later in the day, the teen told her father what had happened, and he called the police. Detectives questioned the family and eventually identified Mendez, a cousin of the girl's stepmother, as the alleged assailant.
Mendez had been ordered to wear a GPS ankle bracelet due to pending deportation proceedings against him.
With help from an agent with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, police found Mendez at his home on South Escondido Boulevard.
The suspect was booked into Vista Jail Wednesday on suspicion of rape, burglary, child molestation and committing lewd acts with a minor.
Despite the family tie, the victim was not acquainted with the suspect, Carter said.
